Hey i just purchased a 01 r/t for 4g out the box. 95,000 miles 1 owner and no wrecks. The car is suprizingly fast for a neon, unfortantly the previous owner lived in vermont so there is slight serfuce rust on the breaks and cv joints but what else do u suspect from a car that is 4 years old. Anyways i just had a few questions about the car and i figure this would be a good place to start asking.


1. I notice a roatating clicking noise coming from i guess one of the pullys, or belts has anyone dignostd this yet. Im thinking it may be the altonator pully.

2. Anyone know a good way to detail the motor, The car coming from vermont i guess the salts from the snow ccoverd roads have got under the hood and have tarnished the intake manifold if anyone has any good tips in renewing the aluminum please post.


thanks everyone i look forward to hearing some feedback this is the first dodge i have ever owned so please take these questions into consideration. And let me know if i have chosen wisly.


Thanks,
Tommy

 

the clicking noise comin from that side is the evaporitive purge solenoid it does kinda tend to be loud everynow and then pay no mind...

MMM...for the engine clean there are a lot of things you can do...I would just go to find engine detailing products @ a body/detailing shop. Im not quite sure how salt affects it and all...

 

should i get the belts replaced? i have no past records of matinace done to this car. I noticed all the motor is mounted oppisote of most other 4 clyinder type motors. as in the tranny being on the drivers side verses being on the passenger side of any eclipse or any other honda.


secondly, do they make a turbo that bolts on to the magnum 2.0 motor?

 

I'd agree that the tapping is probably the EVAP/Purge solenoid. You can put your hand on it and feel it. If the tapping is rising and falling with rpm's, that's when I'd suspect something with the belts or pulley. Could also be just valve noise - hydraulic lifters, nothing to worry about.

Degreaser and turtle wax spray stuff at a DIY car wash. Let the engine cool, tape/bag over the alternator, spray a buttload of degreaser and let it sit for a few minutes, then power wash. Then apply the turtle wax, shut the hood, start the engine (don't forget the bag on the alternator...), and let it cook on for 10 minutes or so. Should shine things up nicely. I had my car in New England (Connecticut/Massachusetts) for 7+ years. I'll have to grind off the bolts for the battery tray eventually... rust sucks...

The 4-cylinder non-turbo Eclipses (420A motor, same Dodge block that's on the Neon) has the motor/tranny setup the same, just backwards airflow (in at the firewall, exhaust up front).

Hahn Racecraft and Chill Factory make bolt-on turbo setups. You can find them at www.howellautomotive.com and www.modernperformance.com . You can also get the SRT-4 exhaust manifold/turbo, adapter plate, SRT-4 intercooler and piping, Walbro 255 lph pump, 1:1 fpr, and various fittings and lines for oil if you're up for a DIY project. There's a guy up in Mass (Kevin) that just dynoed 240+ WHP on his '03 (Magnum head with 2 head gaskets and a spacer) on stock internals. Very impressive...

If you have to have a 2nd gen, the '01 Magnum motor is the one to have (better cam than the '02-up Magnums). Like all of the Neon motors, the timing belt and water pump is due every 105k miles. You don't want to skip this, it gets expensive replacing 16 valves if it breaks... Other than that, you should have a pretty trouble-free car as long as you keep up with the maintenance, which really isn't that much...

Best of luck!

 

well thanks for the tip, how would i bag the altenator when its at the bottom of the motor, Also why important is it to replace the waterpump if it is functioning properly?

 

Because the waterpump is easy to get to when the timing is being done...and the waterpump usually goes around the same time if you look at your maintenance schedule in your neon's owner's manual.

 

unfortantly when i got the car the previous owner must've took the owners manual and floormats. Does anyone know a good estimate for all belts and waterpump replacment? Also i have no previous matinence records prior to my ownership so that might also be a downfall. i went to get an alighnment and i had to replace a tierod witch cost me 150 bucks with alignment included.


Also the clicking noise does increase in speed as the rpms do. After about 3 rhousand u can hardly notice it over the running motor. If it still makes this noise after belts are replaced it must come down to a pully or some internal noise. But it sounds almost like an intune cricket singing away in a clear night. Just more on the clicky side then a the squily side of the type of noise preduced.

 

If you don't have an owner's manual, you should at least go down and pick up a Haynes or Chiltons manual. That will also help with most of the simple maintenance... like the power steering and alternator belts, for example. You cna pick up a set of very nice quality belts at a parts store for $30 or so and have them installed by yourself in under an hour. A shop is going to charge you 2-3 times that amount.

Then there's the timing belt, which is different... You can get all the parts (belt, water pump) for under $200, then use the how-to at www.boogerracing.net to do the job over a weekend (or a day if you have help and it's your first time). The how-to is for a 1st gen, but the only difference you're likely to run into is the motor mount setup. A shop is going to run $500-750 easily. Water pumps don't always give warning when they are going to fail. You don't have to do it today, so just start putting a little money aside for a while until you have enough to get it done, preferably by the time you hit the 100k mile point.

Squeaking sound would make me lean more towards a belt (alt/ps).

 

its not a squeak its more like a rotating click. And it comes from the pully side of the motor. The belts look original so im hoping its just belt noise. But if not who knows.

 

ihave that exact same noise and if i put my hand on the power steering pump i can feelit